- •Britis values and assumptions. Monarchy
- •Tasks for the video lesson 1. The island people (I)
- •Lesson 2. The island people (II)
- •Task 3. After watching. Sailing to britain...
- •As others see us
- •0 Wad1 come Pow'r the giftie2 gie3 us
- •It wad frae5 mony6 a blander free us
- •Views of britain. The official view
- •Тhe people's view
- •British society a changing world
- •Attitudes
- •Stereotypes and change
- •English versus british
- •Multiculturalism
- •Conservatism
- •Being different
- •The love of nature
- •The national trust
- •The love of animals
- •Formality and informality
- •The scruffy british
- •Public spiritedness and amateurism
- •I. Mark the following areas of activity as 'professional' or 'amateur / voluntary':
- •II. Sort out the following as positively or negatively viewed by the British:
- •Privacy and sex
- •Lovely weather we're having
- •I. Turn the following noun phrases into the corresponding verbal ones. Make the necessary changes.
- •II. Match the nouns with the adjectives they collocate with:
- •What is england?
- •I. Which of the following proverbs best reflect, to your thinking, the peculiarities of the English national character?
- •II. Explain the meaning of the following:
- •III. Match the adjectives with the nouns they collocate with:
- •IV. Explain the use of articles with the word England:
- •I. Fill in the grid:
- •II. Sort out the details for each "stereotype" of the English person
- •III. Answer the questions:
- •IV. Do you agree that
- •No longer an island
- •Have the english finally left their
- •Island mentality behind?
- •Cast in the same mould
- •Change of direction
- •I. Match the following proper names with relevant characteristics:
- •I. In groups and pairs discuss:
- •Vigdis Vad Milsen: a foreigner's point of view
- •Interview people who had contacts with the British or Americans. Ask about their impressions and discuss the results of your research in class. О национальном характере англичан.
- •Monarchy
- •Vocabulary
- •The royal family
- •The Sovereign
- •The Royal Family
- •The monarchy
- •I. Great Britain is a monarchy. Find out from your partner: what is the role of the monarch in a highly developed modern country?
- •II. Choose the correct equivalent for the word:
- •V. Say if you agree or .Disagree with the following and explain why:
- •VII. Express your opinion on the following:
- •Adapt or die?
- •I. Find out the following.
- •II. Make sure you understand the following words and expressions:
- •III. Match the words on the left with their definitions in the right-hand column:
- •IV. Fill in the gaps with the prepositions:
- •In groups and pairs discuss:
- •Republicans owe Sophie a debt of thanks
- •Banish minor royals from public life, say No 10 aides
- •The speaker we need
- •An open letter to her majesty queen elizabeth II
- •I remain,
- •III. Choose the right preposition:
- •IV. Fill in the gaps where necessary with suitable notional or functional words, using your active vocabulary:
- •V. Translate from Russian into English, using your active vocabulary:
III. Answer the questions:
Is it correct to say that there is a typical image of an Englishman?
Which is "more English": to shoot big game or to think big thoughts?
When was the idea of Englishness "feminized"?
What artists and authors contributed to the formation of the image of the English during World War II?
How did the idea of Englishness develop after World War II?
What is the future of the idea of Englishness, according to the author?
IV. Do you agree that
... an imperial adventurer of an Englishman is impressive and intimidating, but also terrifying and absurd?
... England has not been an unchanging thing?
... the English are a nation of gardeners and housewives?
... the perception of national identity can be variable?
... now the idea of English-speaking people is baffling?
... 'England now' is something to be imagined and created rather than remembered and preserved unchanged?
FOLLOW-UP
I. Describe a character (from a book, film, etc.) that can illustrate the idea of Englishness as you understand it.
No longer an island
READING TASK
Read the following article and note how England is redefining its traditional image.
Have the english finally left their
Island mentality behind?
For the English, it was a shame and bad taste to be an alien, and it is no use pretending otherwise... "A criminal may improve and become a decent member of society. A foreigner cannot improve. Once a foreigner, always a foreigner." Thus wrote George Mikes, a native Hungarian imported by the BBC, in How To Be An Alien (1946), before dishing out a few hints to anyone bold enough to apply for British nationality:
"Deny that you know any foreign language (including your mother tongue)" and "the works of Dostoyevsky should be replaced by a volume on British Birds..." But nowadays, is there hope for the Englishman outside of his natural habitat?
Cast in the same mould
Born out of the nation's very specific history and geography, and moulded by such unique traditions as driving on the left and the cult of gardening, not to mention male-only cricket clubs, the image of the Englishman hasn't changed for generations. He may have sailed across all the seas of the planet, but he remains firmly anchored to his native isle. From Voltaire, a staunch Anglophile, to Margaret Thatcher, one and the same vision seems to govern the delicate relationship between Albion and the Continent. Ian Buruma's book, Voltaire's. Coconuts (1999), sends up Great Britain as the island of liberty that lies opposite Europe, that dark, despotic Continent.
Even from a technological point of view, the country that saw the birth of the Industrial Revolution was wary of entering the age of modernity as soon as it was a question of being linked to Europe. The journey from Paris to London (600km) required at least half a day's travelling for many a year, aboard sluggish trains and rolling ferries. Not until 1994 did the Franco-Anglo-Belgian consortium launch the Chunnel and bridge that 30-kilometre gap between Britain and France. Even if some prominent Englishmen continued to raise their voices in protest while the tunnel was being dug! Back in the early days of Eurostar, rumour had it that, in case of an invasion, it would still be possible to flood the tunnel on the English side...